第二十七回 · 解屍脫命 The Corpse-Trick — Journey to the West

原文 Original text 繁體 Traditional Reader's edition

解屍脫命 The Corpse-Trick

三sān藏zàng正zhèng在zài此cǐ羞xiū慚cán，行xíng者zhě又yòu發fā起qǐ性xìng來lái，掣chè鐵tiě棒bàng，望wàng妖yāo精jīng劈pī臉liǎn一yí下xià。那nà怪guài物wù有yǒu些xiē手shǒu段duàn，使shǐ個gè「解jiě屍shī法fǎ」，見jiàn行xíng者zhě棍gùn子zi來lái時shí，他tā卻què抖dǒu擻sǒu精jīng神shén，預yù先xiān走zǒu了le，把bǎ一yí個gè假jiǎ屍shī首shǒu打dǎ死sǐ在zài地dì下xià。諕xià得de個gè長zhǎng老lǎo戰zhàn戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng，口kǒu中zhōng作zuò念niàn道dào：「這zhè猴hóu著zhuó然rán無wú禮lǐ，屢lǚ勸quàn不bù從cóng，無wú故gù傷shāng人rén性xìng命mìng。」行xíng者zhě道dào：「師shī父fù莫mò怪guài，你nǐ且qiě來lái看kàn看kàn這zhè罐guàn子zi裡lǐ是shì甚shén東dōng西xī？」沙shā僧sēng攙chān著zhe長zhǎng老lǎo，近jìn前qián看kàn時shí，那nǎ裡lǐ是shì甚shén香xiāng米mǐ飯fàn，卻què是shì一yí罐guàn子zi拖tuō尾wěi巴ba的de長cháng蛆qū；也yě不bú是shì麵miàn觔jīn，卻què是shì幾jǐ個gè青qīng蛙wā、癩lài蝦há蟆má，滿mǎn地dì亂luàn跳tiào。長zhǎng老lǎo才cái有yǒu三sān分fēn兒er信xìn了le。三sān藏zàng正zhèng在zài此cǐ羞xiū惭cán，行xíng者zhě又yòu发fā起qǐ性xìng来lái，掣chè铁tiě棒bàng，望wàng妖yāo精jīng劈pī脸liǎn一yí下xià。那nà怪guài物wù有yǒu些xiē手shǒu段duàn，使shǐ个gè「解jiě尸shī法fǎ」，见jiàn行xíng者zhě棍gùn子zi来lái时shí，他tā却què抖dǒu擞sǒu精jīng神shén，预yù先xiān走zǒu了le，把bǎ一yí个gè假jiǎ尸shī首shǒu打dǎ死sǐ在zài地dì下xià。諕xià得de个gè长zhǎng老lǎo战zhàn战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng，口kǒu中zhōng作zuò念niàn道dào：「这zhè猴hóu著zhuó然rán无wú礼lǐ，屡lǚ劝quàn不bù从cóng，无wú故gù伤shāng人rén性xìng命mìng。」行xíng者zhě道dào：「师shī父fù莫mò怪guài，你nǐ且qiě来lái看kàn看kàn这zhè罐guàn子zi里lǐ是shì甚shén东dōng西xī？」沙shā僧sēng搀chān著zhe长zhǎng老lǎo，近jìn前qián看kàn时shí，那nǎ里lǐ是shì甚shén香xiāng米mǐ饭fàn，却què是shì一yí罐guàn子zi拖tuō尾wěi巴ba的de长cháng蛆qū；也yě不bú是shì面miàn觔jīn，却què是shì几jǐ个gè青qīng蛙wā、癞lài虾há蟆má，满mǎn地dì乱luàn跳tiào。长zhǎng老lǎo才cái有yǒu三sān分fēn儿er信xìn了le。

逐句解 Line by line

三sān藏zàng正zhèng在zài此cǐ羞xiū慚cán，行xíng者zhě又yòu發fā起qǐ性xìng來lái，掣chè鐵tiě棒bàng，望wàng妖yāo精jīng劈pī臉liǎn一yí下xià。三sān藏zàng正zhèng在zài此cǐ羞xiū惭cán，行xíng者zhě又yòu发fā起qǐ性xìng来lái，掣chè铁tiě棒bàng，望wàng妖yāo精jīng劈pī脸liǎn一yí下xià。

While Tripitaka sat there in his shame, Pilgrim, his temper flaring up again, whipped out the iron cudgel and struck the fiend a blow full in the face.

羞慚 (xiū cán) "shame, mortification." 發起性來 (fā qǐ xìng lái) "to fly into a temper." 劈臉一下 (pī liǎn yí xià) "a blow straight at the face." Wukong's blow — struck in anger as much as judgement — sets the disaster in motion; whatever its rightness, it will read to the horrified elder as murder.

那nà怪guài物wù有yǒu些xiē手shǒu段duàn，使shǐ個gè「解jiě屍shī法fǎ」，見jiàn行xíng者zhě棍gùn子zi來lái時shí，他tā卻què抖dǒu擻sǒu精jīng神shén，預yù先xiān走zǒu了le，把bǎ一yí個gè假jiǎ屍shī首shǒu打dǎ死sǐ在zài地dì下xià。那nà怪guài物wù有yǒu些xiē手shǒu段duàn，使shǐ个gè「解jiě尸shī法fǎ」，见jiàn行xíng者zhě棍gùn子zi来lái时shí，他tā却què抖dǒu擞sǒu精jīng神shén，预yù先xiān走zǒu了le，把bǎ一yí个gè假jiǎ尸shī首shǒu打dǎ死sǐ在zài地dì下xià。

But the monster had arts of its own, and worked a Corpse-Liberation spell: seeing Pilgrim's cudgel coming, it braced its spirit and slipped away in advance, leaving a false corpse struck dead upon the ground.

那怪物 "that monster," 那 (nà). 解屍法 (jiě shī fǎ) "the Corpse-Liberation method" — a technique for shedding a decoy body and escaping in spirit (元神), so that the real demon survives while a lifeless double takes the blow. 棍子 (gùn zi) "cudgel," 子 (zi). This is why the coming chain of "killings" resolves nothing: each blow slays only a shell.

諕xià得de個gè長zhǎng老lǎo戰zhàn戰zhàn兢jīng兢jīng，口kǒu中zhōng作zuò念niàn道dào：「這zhè猴hóu著zhuó然rán無wú禮lǐ，屢lǚ勸quàn不bù從cóng，無wú故gù傷shāng人rén性xìng命mìng。」諕xià得de个gè长zhǎng老lǎo战zhàn战zhàn兢jīng兢jīng，口kǒu中zhōng作zuò念niàn道dào：「这zhè猴hóu著zhuó然rán无wú礼lǐ，屡lǚ劝quàn不bù从cóng，无wú故gù伤shāng人rén性xìng命mìng。」

The elder, frightened out of his wits, trembled and muttered a prayer: "This monkey is truly beyond all manners! Time and again I counsel him, and he will not heed — killing a person's life for no cause at all."

諕得 "frightened so that," 諕 (xià), 得 (de). 著然無禮 (zhuó rán wú lǐ) "truly, flagrantly ill-mannered" — here 著 (zhuó), on the analogy of 著實 (zhuó shí) "really, truly" (a reading flagged for review). 口中 (kǒu zhōng) "in his mouth," 中 (zhōng). The elder sees only a wanton killing; the gap between what he sees (a slain woman) and what is true (a vanished fiend) is the whole tragedy in miniature.

行xíng者zhě道dào：「師shī父fù莫mò怪guài，你nǐ且qiě來lái看kàn看kàn這zhè罐guàn子zi裡lǐ是shì甚shén東dōng西xī？」行xíng者zhě道dào：「师shī父fù莫mò怪guài，你nǐ且qiě来lái看kàn看kàn这zhè罐guàn子zi里lǐ是shì甚shén东dōng西xī？」

Said Pilgrim, "Don't take it amiss, Master — just come and see what's in this jar."

莫怪 (mò guài) "do not blame [me]." 罐子 (guàn zi) "jar," 子 (zi); 甚東西 "what thing," 甚 (shén) "what." Wukong, undaunted, offers the physical proof — the jar's contents — that ought to settle the matter, and for a moment nearly does.

沙shā僧sēng攙chān著zhe長zhǎng老lǎo，近jìn前qián看kàn時shí，那nǎ裡lǐ是shì甚shén香xiāng米mǐ飯fàn，卻què是shì一yí罐guàn子zi拖tuō尾wěi巴ba的de長cháng蛆qū；沙shā僧sēng搀chān著zhe长zhǎng老lǎo，近jìn前qián看kàn时shí，那nǎ里lǐ是shì甚shén香xiāng米mǐ饭fàn，却què是shì一yí罐guàn子zi拖tuō尾wěi巴ba的de长cháng蛆qū；

Sha Monk helped the elder up, and when they came near to look — where was any fragrant rice? It was a jar full of long, tail-dragging maggots;

攙著 (chān zhe) "supporting [him] by the arm," 著 (zhe). Two 長: 長老 = zhǎng (elder, first), 長蛆 = cháng (long maggots, second). 那裡是甚香米飯 "where was there any fragrant rice" — 那裡 (nǎ lǐ) rhetorical (那 (nǎ)), 甚 (shén) "any." The rice revealed as 長蛆 "long maggots" is the demon's disguise stripped from the food as it could not be from her face.

也yě不bú是shì麵miàn觔jīn，卻què是shì幾jǐ個gè青qīng蛙wā、癩lài蝦há蟆má，滿mǎn地dì亂luàn跳tiào。也yě不bú是shì面miàn觔jīn，却què是shì几jǐ个gè青qīng蛙wā、癞lài虾há蟆má，满mǎn地dì乱luàn跳tiào。

and no wheat-gluten either, but a few green frogs and warty toads, hopping every which way over the ground.

麵觔 (miàn jīn) "wheat-gluten" (觔 a variant of 筋). 青蛙 (qīng wā) "green frogs"; 癩蝦蟆 (lài há ma) "warty toads" — where 蝦 (há) takes its 蝦蟆 (toad) reading, not the 蝦 (xiā) of "shrimp." The loathsome swarm is the plain sensory evidence of the demon's fraud, briefly turning the elder toward belief.

長zhǎng老lǎo才cái有yǒu三sān分fēn兒er信xìn了le。长zhǎng老lǎo才cái有yǒu三sān分fēn儿er信xìn了le。

Only then did the elder come to believe it — some thirty per cent.

才有三分兒信了 "only then believed [it] some three parts in ten" — 三分兒 "a third," the suffix 兒 (er). The precise, meagre fraction (三分 (sān fēn)) is quietly comic and quietly tragic: even the evidence of maggots and toads wins only a partial, provisional belief — enough for Bajie's slander, in the next passage, to undo entirely.

總評 Commentary

The passage introduces the mechanism that makes the whole three-fold episode possible: the 解屍法, the Corpse-Liberation trick, by which the demon sheds a lifeless decoy and escapes in spirit while a false body takes the blow. This is why Wukong's blows never resolve anything — each slays only a shell — and why the master, seeing a woman struck dead, can only read murder. The device turns the conflict into a cruel machine: true sight strikes, and produces a corpse.

Against the demon's illusion the narrator sets hard sensory proof. The jar, opened, holds not rice and gluten but long maggots and warty toads — the disguise stripped from the food as it could not be stripped from her face. For a moment the evidence tells: the elder comes to believe it, the narrator notes with deadpan precision, "some thirty per cent." That meagre, provisional fraction is the whole pathos of the scene — even maggots buy only a partial belief, and a partial belief is no defence at all.

The passage also holds Wukong's error and rightness in a single frame. He strikes in flaring temper (發起性來), which the elder cannot but see as wanton; yet he immediately offers the proof ("come and see what's in this jar") that vindicates him. Right in substance, rash in manner — the pattern that will destroy him.